Legal Services Committee

The Legal Services Act 2007 (the Act) was introduced in order to improve competition, flexibility, and choice for consumers in the legal services market by enabling entities that are not legal firms to offer legal services. The Act created the Legal Services Board (LSB) which has a duty to promote the regulatory objectives of the Act. The LSB oversees the whole regulatory framework in England and Wales and supervises the work of Approved Regulators and Licensing Authorities which are permitted by law to regulate the supply of legal services and which also have a duty to promote the regulatory objectives. One of the legal activities reserved under the Act is probate. ICAEW received designation as an approved regulator and licensing authority for probate services in July and August 2014, respectively. ICAEW received designation as an approved regulator and licensing authority for the administration of oaths in April 2020.

The Legal Services Committee governs the arrangements for ICAEW’s regulation of the reserved legal services of probate and oaths administration. It is responsible for undertaking ICAEW’s responsibilities as an Approved Regulator and Licensing Authority under the Act for both of these reserved legal activities.

The committee carries out its responsibilities within the framework outlined by the regulatory objectives in the Act, its terms of reference and the Legal Services Regulations.

The committee is comprised of ten members, five of whom must be lay (for legal services) members and five technical members, the chair being a lay (for legal services) member with a casting vote. Up to half the members of the committee will be practitioners with expertise in the regulated areas. Lay members must not be lawyers or persons with legal training. The Chair of the committee is a lay (for legal services) member and has a casting vote. The requirements of the constitution of the committee are contained in its Terms of Reference. Members are appointed for a term of three years which may be renewed once.

The committee may not include any person who is a member of the Conduct, Disciplinary or Appeal Committees. Members of Council, ICAEW Board and the IRB do not serve on the committee.

The Legal Services Regulations govern the authorisation, licensing and conduct of entities and individuals wishing to undertake probate work within the framework of the Act and compensation scheme to provide consume protection.

The Legal Services Committee has responsibility for the following activities:

1. • ICAEW's functions as an approved regulator and licensing authority as set out more fully in the Legal Services Regulations, which include:
   • considering and determining applications for probate accreditation;
   • considering and determining applications for authorised individual, Head of Legal Practice, Head of Finance and Administration, non-authorised owner or probate affiliate status;
   • monitoring compliance with the Legal Services Regulations;
   • taking regulatory action as required to secure compliance with the Legal Services Regulations;
   • referring matters to ICAEW’s disciplinary committees as required;
   • compiling and maintaining a register of licensed firms and supplying this information to the Legal Services Board as required.
2. ICAEW’s functions under the Legal Services Compensation Scheme Regulations in determining applications for grants.
3. The development of ICAEW policy in relation to legal services practitioners, in consultation with key stakeholders;
4. Rule-setting and any amendments to the Legal Services Regulations and Legal Services Compensation Scheme Regulations in consultation with the LSB and other key stakeholders;
5. Attendance, through its Chair or Deputy Chair, at meetings convened by the Legal Services Board where the Chair of the LSC is invited to attend; and
6. Liaising freely with the LSB and other stakeholders on matters concerning legal services practitioners and responding to requests for information from the LSB.

In cases where the supervision of firms highlights an actual or possible breach of its regulatory arrangements, the Legal Services Committee will act to protect the public interest and the interests of consumers. This may be through a range of measures, from obtaining an informal undertaking from the firm or individual to put things right to the imposition of formal regulatory and disciplinary sanctions such as the imposition of conditions or restrictions, the suspension or withdrawal of accreditation, disqualification or a fine (the level of which will be guided by the sanctions guidance).

The LSC is responsible each year for reviewing the proposed budget for the forecasted costs of legal services regulatory work and determining whether any adjustments should be made to the licence fees charged to ICAEW’s accredited firms in order to ensure that sufficient resources are available to discharge all of ICAEW’s legal services regulatory responsibilities.

The Legal Services Committee normally meets 4 to 6 times a year and meetings are normally held at Chartered Accountants’ Hall or virtually. The quorum for the committee is five, of whom the majority of whom must be lay members.

At each meeting, the committee is assisted by a committee administrator who provides administrative support. The committee is also assisted by a committee secretary, a lawyer, who supports the committee by providing both legal and procedural advice, when required.

The committee may also seek advice from any source that it considers appropriate to enable it to discharge its responsibilities.